A letter from exchange compliance: how to reply and what not to write
Your first reply to a compliance officer weighs more than every reply that follows it: contradictions between versions are the top cause of drawn-out refusals. Here is the anatomy of a reply that a case officer can act on and close in your favor.
What they actually want from you
Point-by-point answers
A compliance letter is a checklist. Your reply has to mirror its structure, so that every question becomes a separate item with an answer and an annex.
Consistency
Your reply is compared against the KYC profile, the ticket history and the transaction engine's data. Discrepancies read as deception.
Documents, not assurances
"I am an honest person" weighs nothing. A bank statement with a date and an amount does.
What to do, step by step
- Read the letter twice and write out every question as a separate line. Requests often pack two or three questions into one sentence.
- Collect a document for every item BEFORE writing the reply text.
- Keep a strict structure: quoted question → short answer → reference to a numbered annex.
- Re-read the draft against everything you have already written to the exchange, old support tickets included, and remove any contradiction.
- Keep a copy of the reply and of all the annexes: the next rounds will reference this package.
An open ready-to-fill template for this situation: Compliance reply template →
What NOT to do
- Do not write emotional walls of text and do not threaten "lawyers and court" in the first reply. That marks you as a problem client and settles nothing.
- Do not reply in parts ("I'll send the rest later"), because every addition sends the case back to the end of the queue.
- Do not embellish even small details: the engine sees your transactions better than you remember them.
What Onyx does in your case
- Forensic report on your addresses: what exactly triggered the flag, how far your funds really are from the risk cluster, and what the counterparties show.
- Source of Funds dossier: a chronological reconstruction of your capital with documents, in the format compliance actually reads.
- Communication with the platform's compliance or your bank: one consistent, verified position instead of a pile of scattered tickets.
Frequently asked questions
How much time is given to reply?
Usually 7 to 30 days, stated in the letter. If documents are missing, request an extension in writing BEFORE the deadline. That is normal practice and it is respected.
Reply myself or with a specialist?
A single routine KYC request is fine on your own. With an AML flag, large amounts or a P2P complaint, the cost of an error in the first reply is too high: once a version is on record, it cannot be rewritten.
I already replied chaotically. Now what?
Do not breed new versions. Systematize once: one structured addendum that consolidates the previous replies into a single chronology with documents.
Other platforms
Free preliminary case assessment
Describe your situation and we will give you an honest assessment: what is realistically possible, how long it takes and what it costs. No "guaranteed unlocks": they do not exist, because the decision sits with compliance.